No '60s-style British sound or '90s feedback vapor trails for the band this time out, Sarzana says. "The only movement I'd ever want to be a part of is Mascagni's Intermezzo." Perhaps paradoxically, that classical music way of thinking applies to their sampling techniques as well.

"Though we use technology to our advantage, it's still an organic process," Sarzana says. "Any sample that you hear is an instrument being played as a sample for the duration, as opposed to just sampling an instrument and looping it. There is a big difference in the feel and the discipline. 'Classical' instruments in a modern way? Yes. Putting timpani through fuzz, orchestral bells as the lead instrument, castanets and harpsichord to create rhythm tracks. . . . It's still the wall of sound, but we are trying to forward the technological approach by using the old toys in a new way, while blending and breaking rules with new ones. A bit claustrophobic now, but there's no doubt about it: the sound is bigger than ever and has so much color. I think we found the fine balance of those components. It just sounds massive."